


Song For A Winter's Night

by hgleiser



Series: Wrong Direction [11]
Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Fluff, M/M, Mistletoe, Snow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-01
Updated: 2016-08-01
Packaged: 2018-07-28 14:39:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7644934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hgleiser/pseuds/hgleiser
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fernando isn't sure Mark can give him what he wants the most for Christmas, but sometimes wishes come true.  This is the third and final Christmas fic in this series until I tackle Advent goodies this December.  Many thanks and engine development tokens to L. and A. for putting up with me and my tendency to rot teeth with fluff.  Title comes from a Sarah McLachlan song.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Song For A Winter's Night

“Nano?”

“Yes?”

Mark rinsed a few dinner plates then handed them to Fernando, who stood next to him with a dish cloth at the ready to dry them. “Any ideas of what you want yet?”

“What could I want?” Fernando reached into the hot, soapy water to his left and took Mark’s hand in his for a moment. “I have you, this house, this life. I don’t need more.”

“This isn’t about being practical or needing things, Nano. I’m asking what you want. What’s something you’ve always dreamed of having?”

Fernando went to open one of the cabinets and placed the dry plates on the shelf, grateful his back was turned to hide his embarrassed smile. _Thirty-five years and still hoping,_ he thought. _Pap_ _á Noel couldn’t make my wish come true when I was a boy. Not sure how you could now._

“Let me see if I can figure it out.” Mark scrubbed forks and spoons one by one with a sponge as he spoke. “A puppy. We’ve talked about having a dog for a while.”

Fernando shook his head and rejoined him at the sink to dry each one as they were passed to him by the handful. “That’s not what I’m thinking of.”

“A new bicycle?”

“No, mine still works.”

“A kitten? Maybe a nice Siberian?”

Fernando wrinkled his nose. “Is bad enough that Nico wants a cat.”

“A better camera?”

It was tempting given that he’d recently taken up photography again with help from Sebastian and a few classes when they all had time off, but with their hectic lives it was far more convenient to practice his shooting skills with his phone—and still not what he’d wished for in vain for as long as he could remember. “No, I don’t think so.”

“There has to be something.”

“Si, but am not sure you could get it for me.”

“Always up for a challenge.” Mark smiled down at him. “Try me.”

“A white Christmas.” Fernando sheepishly returned the smile. “I’ve never had one.”

“Unless we pile into the car and take the Eurotunnel to the Alps, that’s a tall order for Mother Nature.”

Fernando shook his head. “Is our rest time. I don’t want to put you or the guys through that.” They took short vacations throughout the year to recharge when necessary, but the holiday season was cause for being off the road from the week before Christmas to the week after New Year’s to allow all of them enough time to relax and see friends and family closer to home. Taking up their personal time for something so selfish felt wrong.

Mark nodded in understanding. “Is there anything maybe a little more manageable you’d like?”

Fernando glanced at the entryway to the kitchen, over which hung a single sprig of mistletoe, then turned back toward him and winked. “Plenty of time under that.”

“Come here, you.” Mark dropped the pot he’d been washing back into the water and pulled Fernando toward the entryway for a long kiss, nibbling at his lower lip and enjoying the way it made Fernando go limp in his arms. “Promise you won’t tell you got an early present?”

Fernando stood on tiptoe, using his fingers in Mark’s hair to bring him in for another kiss. “Never.”

That night, while he held a sleeping Mark in his arms, Fernando stared out the window at their backyard and pictured it covered in swathes of sparkling white. _Maybe I should not have asked,_ he thought. _He probably thinks I’ve lost my mind. Who asks their boyfriend to give them a white Christmas for Christmas? Is impossible unless he knew where to buy a miracle at the last minute._

Despite years of being told by his parents every time he gazed fondly at pictures of snowy landscapes on Christmas cards that it was the season of miracles, as he drifted off one seemed further away than ever.

 

***

 

“Wake up, buddy.”

“Mm, is no way it is morning yet.”

Mark reached for his watch on the nightstand. “It’s two-thirty. Technically...”

“Not opening presents yet,” mumbled Fernando, a faint smile appearing on his lips. “Go back to sleep.”

“What if I said I had one for you?”

“Can wait until later when we’ve had more sleep.”

“Aw, Fonz, we can sleep later. It’s Christmas. Wake up.”

“Fonz, we can sleep after our stomachs are full of breakfast and make the rest of them wait to open _their_ presents. It’s Christmas. Wake up.” Mark nudged Fernando’s shoulder with his own a second time. “Aren’t you at least a little curious?”

“Si, but am not awake enough to be more than a little. I want to be surprised and I need energy for that. For energy I need sleep.” Fernando turned on his side and pulled the covers up over his head. “Love you. Good night.”

Minutes later the covers were gently pulled down to his chin and Mark’s smiling face loomed mere inches from Fernando’s nose.

“Psst. Nano.”

“Si?”

“Wake up again.”

“Maaarrrk,” pleaded Fernando, “go back to sleep. Please.”

“I refuse. You’re too adorable when you’re annoyed. Besides, you know you want to know.”

Fernando blinked his eyes open and stretched his arms above his head, curiosity getting the better of him. “Where is it?”

“Outside.” Mark climbed out of bed, far more awake and excited than any man should be in the middle of the night in Fernando’s opinion, and tugged at his hand. “Though we don’t have to go outside to see it unless you want to.”

“Mmm, give me a moment...” Fernando yawned then swung his legs out of bed and slowly stood up. “Am not as young as I was when we met.”

“You’re younger than me!” Mark went to stand behind him, his hands moving over Fernando’s sides until they came to rest on his shoulders. “And you more than keep up in bed for a so-called old man.”

“I try.” Fernando couldn’t help smiling, proud that Mark was satisfied with his efforts the night before that had left them both gasping for breath in each others’ arms.

Mark kissed his blushing cheeks. “You succeed. Now close your eyes.”

Once Fernando had done so, Mark led him toward the window then pulled the curtains open to reveal the backyard covered in a thick blanket of snow that was still steadily falling.

“Ready to see your present?”

“Si.”

“Open your eyes.”

Fernando gazed out the window in awe, pinching his forearm to make sure he wasn’t dreaming, and was relieved to see the snow hadn’t suddenly disappeared off every branch and blade of grass. _There are no words for this,_ he thought. _Es indescriptible._

“I’d hoped Mother Nature and Father Christmas would deliver on time.” Mark wrapped his arms around his waist and rested his chin on his shoulder. “You can imagine how tight their schedule is today.”

Fernando giggled. “I can’t believe it. Snow! Is  _real_ ! I could go outside and feel how cold it is. The pictures don’t compare.”

“I woke up because I’d already seen the forecast for snow showers and hoped they’d started so I peeked then got back in bed to wait for the ground to be more covered. My original plan was to show you first thing in the morning but I couldn’t wait.” Mark nuzzled his neck. “I had to see how happy it would make you.”

“Is the best Christmas I’ve had.” Fernando blinked and a single tear slipped down his face. “Wishes come true if you wish long and hard enough, no? It only took thirty-five years.”

Mark leaned in and kissed it away. “I’ve got you beaten. It took me thirty-seven to find you.”

“Not bad for another old man.” Fernando placed his hands on top of Mark’s and leaned back against him. “Was I worth the wait?”

“Of course. Was the snow?”

Fernando glanced upward and grinned, thoughts of snow angels and snowmen wearing Mark’s and his scarves already filling his mind. “Almost as much as you.”


End file.
